The shoreline has moved back 25 to 40 feet since 1995, according to the Adirondack Park Agency.

Realizing the problem two years ago, local leaders secured permits from the APA, the state Department of Environmental Conservation and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to build three revetments made of half-ton rocks reaching into Lake Champlain to combat the erosion. The revetments are 4,080, 4,110 and 4,670 square feet in size, and the beach end of each will be enveloped in landscaped trees and shrubs.

The town also applied for a $500,000 grant from the state to cover the cost of the project. To date, there has been no one on the grant.

“We’re on the clock to complete this project,” Scozzafava said. “Those permits expire next year and we have to finish the work.”

If the grant application is not approved soon, Moriah officials will have to decided whether to borrow the money for the Bulwagga Bay project or let Mother Nature takes it course.

“No one wants to spent money, but Bulwagga bay is a tremendous asset to the community,” Scozzafava said. “We can’t let it just slip away. If we don’t get the grant we’ll have to bite the bullet and borrow.”

Tim Garrison, a Moriah town board member, agrees.

“We’ll have to borrow the money,” Garrison said. “It doesn’t do anyone any good to just let it go. The beach is one of the few sources of revenue for the town.”